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Wednesday, 28 May 2014

Rao Inderjit
Singh, the MP from Gurgaon, who in his earlier stint in the Ministry of Defence
(MoD) had taken on the Army when it did not accept the indigenously produced
Arjun tanks, today returned to the MoD after a gap of five years.

Rao today joined
as the Minister of State (MoS) for Defence. His work allocation will be decided
by Defence Minister Arun Jaitley.

Rao Inderjit
Singh, who was elected for the fourth time as the MP, is an old hand at the
MoD. He was a MoS between 2006 and 2009 in the first term of the Congress-led
UPA regime (2004-2009). In 2008, he famously batted for the Arjun tanks when
the Army had rejected the DRDO product. Rao was not made a minister in the
second term of the UPA (2009-2014) and he openly questioned land deals in
Gurgaon benefiting Robert Vadra. He quit the Congress and joined the BJP and
was re-elected as the MP from Gurgaon.

It was due to his
efforts a total of 124 Arjun tanks were ordered and delivered to the Army.
However, by then, Rao Inderjit Singh, was not in the ministry to see this. Now,
as he takes over, the next version of the Arjun tanks is being developed. It
may need another push from this former international-level shooter. He secured
a bronze in the Commonwealth Shooting Championship.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140528/nation.htm#17

Not granted leave,
IAF guard kills two colleagues in Mumbai

Tribune News
Service

Mumbai, May 27

A security guard
at the Indian Air Force (IAF) station in Mumbai’s Khar (East) area shot two of
his colleagues and injured two others with his official weapon today, the police
said.

The Nirmal Nagar
police said the incident happened around 1 am when RS Yadav, employed as a
constable with the Defence Security Corps, who was on duty at the IAF station
opened fire from his service weapon at his immediate boss and other colleagues.

Police officials
told this reporter later in the day that Yadav was upset at not being granted
leave.

Those dead have
been identified as Som Datta and HK Singh. The condition of another guard was
critical, while a fourth man suffered injuries in the leg. The two injured have
been admitted to the KEM Hospital, the police said.

While other guards
on duty snatched Yadav’s weapon, the accused fled the premises. The authorities
at the station raised the alarm and the police set up roadblocks around the
area.

A police team on
patrol identified Yadav with his uniform and arrested him from the suburban
Goregaon.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140528/main7.htm

Speculation rife
over full-time Defence Minister

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News
Service

New Delhi, May 27

The Narendra Modi
government has started functioning, but speculation on the composition have not
stopped. A statement by Arun Jaitley that a full-time Defence Minister would be
named in a couple of weeks has now started conjectures on who will make it to
the strategically crucial ministry.

A few names have
already started doing the rounds. They include Arun Shourie, Yashwant Sinha and
Murli Manohar Joshi — senior BJP leaders who have been left out of the Modi's
“compact, young and business like Council of Ministers.”

Among the leaders
with the stature to occupy the chair, Shourie is the only person who is on the
right side of the age (75 years) set by the RSS as the eligibility criteria for
a ministerial berth.

He is 72 while
Joshi (80) and Sinha (76) have crossed the age limit. At 79, former Himachal
Pradesh CM Shanta Kumar is also way off the mark.

After the surprise
entry of Nirmala Sitharaman and Prakash Javadekar-who were almost written off
after they failed to make the cut either for a Rajya Sabha or a Lok Sabha
ticket-many “left out” leaders may have a reason to feel optimistic.
Apparently, the RSS wanted those who worked hard for the party over the years
to be rewarded. “Even if they did not contest, they worked hard and stood by
the party when it was down and out,” a RSS functionary said.

Six out of the 24
Cabinet ministers are women. As External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj is a
part of the powerful Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS)-the natio’'s top
decision-making body on national security-making her the first woman in three
decades (since Indira Gandhi in 1984) to be part of this elite group. Sumitra
Mahajan—the longest serving woman MP—appears slated for the post of the Speaker
of the Lok Sabha.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140528/main6.htm

Jaitley joins as
Defence Minister, albeit temporarily

Says no row over
Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag’s appointment

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News
Service

New Delhi, May 27

BJP leader Arun
Jaitley today took over as new Defence Minister, albeit with a rider that he
could be in the ministry for “only for couple of weeks”, indicating that there
is a Cabinet reshuffle on the cards in the near future for a new incumbent at
South Block.

At the Ministry of
Defence, Jaitely first put to rest any fears that may been generated within the
Army after BJP leaders Gen VK Singh (retd) and Subramaminum Swamy raised
questions over the appointment of Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag as the next Army
Chief. Jaitley told reporters: “I believe there should be no controversy or no
issue about the appointment of any person. Some comments may have been made but
this is not to reflect on the person concerned (Lt Gen Suhag) in any manner”.

Jaitley, sources
said, laid out a roadmap and told officials that the acquisition process had to
be accelerated but within the purview of the set procedures and established
rules.

He went on the
describe the roadmap saying, “We are certainly concerned with the fact that
over the last few years some of the areas had slowed down and expediting them
would be the top priority.” Jaitley avoided commenting if the new government
would increase the present cap of 26 per cent on defence spending.

The new minister
was first briefed by Defence Secretary RK Mathur, Defence Production Secretary
GC Pati, Ex-Servicemen Welfare Secretary Sangita Gairola and Scientific Advisor
to Defence Minister and DRDO chief Dr Avinash Chander. This was followed by a
meeting with the three Service Chiefs, General Bikram Singh, Admiral Robin
Dhowan and Air Chief Marshall Arup Raha.

With a budget of
Rs 2,24,000 crore for this fiscal ending March 31, 2015, the Ministry of
Defence accounts for 12.70 per cent of all government spending – the highest in
terms of share of the Budget. In the past, the respective Prime Ministers have
held additional charge of Defence, this is the first time that a Finance
Minister has been given the Defence portfolio as an additional charge.

In the morning
when he took over as Finance Minister he said, “For a transient phase, I will
be looking after Ministry of Defence also, but that’s only an additional charge
till there’s an expansion in the Cabinet itself”.

Full-Time Defence
Minister To Be Named in a 'Couple of Weeks': Arun Jaitley

Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley, who has been handed additional charge of the important Defence
portfolio in the Narendra Modi government, said on Tuesday that he expects a
full-time Defence Minister to be named in a "couple of weeks."

Taking charge at
the Defence Ministry this morning, a few hours after he had assumed office at
the Finance Ministry, Mr Jaitley said, "Defence is an additional charge
with me until the expansion of the council of ministers...It's an important
ministry and needs urgent decisions."( Controlling Inflation Top Priority: Finance Minister )

Till then, Mr
Jaitley said, he would spend a "reasonable amount of time" at the
Defence ministry.

He expressed
concern over what he called a slowdown in decision-making in defence during the
Congress-led UPA regime and said expediting procurement and modernisation in
the armed forces would be a top priority of the new government. (Meet Narendra
Modi's Council of Ministers)

"The security
of India is of vital importance. Support to our armed forces and equipment
support is going to be priority area," he said. (Foreign Media on the
Modi-Sharif Handshake)

As Mr Jaitley took
over came news that a MIG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force had
crashed in the Bijbehara area of Anantnag district in Kashmir, killing the
pilot. "My heart goes out to the pilot and his family. It's a matter of
great concern (today's accident). I offer my condolences," the minister
said. (MiG-21 Crashes in J&K, Pilot Dead)

On the appointment
of the new Army Chief by the previous government one day before votes were
counted in the general elections, Mr Jaitley said, "I firmly believe that
there should be no controversy on appointment of the person concerned. Some
comments may have been made regards the procedure of a person's appointment but
there should be no reflection on the person concerned." ( Lieutenant
General Dalbir Singh Suhag is India's new Army Chief )

The Manmohan Singh
government had two weeks ago announced that Lt General Dalbir Singh Suhag will
be the next Army chief. Mr Jaitley had written in a blog post then that the
decision not to leave the announcement for the next government displayed
"a high degree of arrogance even in defeat." Then too Mr Jaitley had
qualified his criticism by saying that "the BJP does not wish to bring the
newly appointed Army chief into any controversy."

New Delhi, May 27
(IANS) Speeding up procurement of defence equipment and indigenisation are
among the top priorities, said Arun Jaitley soon after taking charge as defence
minister Tuesday.

He said there
should be no controversy over the appointment of the new Indian Army chief
though his Bharatiya Janata Party had opposed the outgoing government's
decision on this days before leaving office.

"Security of
India is a matter of prime importance. It is about external security of the
country and preparedness of armed forces... speeding up (procurement) of
equipment required for support is the priority area," Jaitley said.

"We are
concerned that in the last few years some areas have slowed down. Expediting
them is a concern," he said.

On indegenisation
of defence equipment, the minister said: "It is an issue, both limbs of
which are dealt by my departments. It is already coming up in
discussions."

He added it was an
area he was "personally willing to oversee".

On the issue of
Lt.Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag becoming the new army chief, Jaitley said there
should be no controversy.

"I believe
there should be no controversy about the appointment of any person," he
told reporters.

Lt. Gen. Suhag was
named the successor to army chief Gen. Bikram Singh by the Congress-led United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) government days before it left office.

The BJP then
objected to the new army chief being named, saying there was no hurry and that
the decision should be left to the new government.

"There were
some comments on the procedure which happened when the model code of conduct
was there. This should not reflect on person concerned in any manner,"
added Jaitley shortly after he assumed office as the new defence minister, an
additional charge he has with the finance ministry.

Jaitley, who met
the three Service chiefs, also expressed concern over the crash of a MiG-21
aircraft in Jammu and Kashmir earlier in the morning.

"It is a
matter of great concern. My heart goes out to the pilot who lost his
life," he said.

Jaitley, who also
took over as the finance minister, however, said the charge of defence ministry
was additional for him and a new minister would take over in "two
weeks" and for now he would try to do a "balancing act".

"I will be
spending reasonable amount of time here (defence ministry) to clear the
backlog, and all new decisions that need to be taken. It is a very important
ministry, hope it gets a full time head in next two weeks," he said.

NEW DELHI: Defence
minister Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday there should be no controversy over the
appointment of the new Indian Army chief, even as the BJP had opposed the
outgoing government's decision on this days before leaving office.

"I believe
there should be no controversy about the appointment of any person," Jaitley
told reporters when asked about Lt. Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag being named the
successor of the Army chief, Gen. Bikram Singh.

"There were
some comments on the procedure which happened when the model code of conduct
was there. This should not reflect on person concerned in any manner,"
added Jaitley shortly after he assumed office as the new defence minister, an
additional charge he has with the finance ministry.

The Congress-led
government took the decision to name Lt. Gen. Suhag the new army chief days
before it left office. This was after the Election Commission gave its nod to
making the announcement.

The Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) had objected to the new army chief being named, saying there
was no hurry and that the decision should be left to the new government.

The former army
chief, Gen. V.K. Singh, had imposed a disciplinary ban on Lt. Gen. Suhag for a
blotched intelligence operation in Assam. Gen. Bikram Singh lifted the ban soon
after he took over in May 2012.

Gen VK Singh is a
minister of state in the newly sworn-in National Democratic Alliance (NDA)
government.